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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28707780">Wicked Grace Under the Mistletoe</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/danceswithhamsters01/pseuds/danceswithhamsters01'>danceswithhamsters01</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Reddit Prompts 2: Because the old one is quite full [22]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Dragon Age: Inquisition</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Card Games, Christmas Fluff, F/M, First Kiss, Fluff, Gambling, Kissing, Mistletoe, Wicked Grace (Dragon Age)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 09:40:23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,666</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28707780</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/danceswithhamsters01/pseuds/danceswithhamsters01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Based on a prompt from r/dragonage.</p>
<p>Prompt 2: The Ace of Dragons, an hourglass, heartbeat, green</p>
<p>This was done as a bit of happy fluff for the holidays. The Inquisition Scouts have a friendly get-together to celebrate Satinalia at The Herald's Rest. At this get-together, a friendly wager is made over a game of cards. Little does Scout Jim (yes, THAT Scout Jim!) know that there's a surprise in store for him.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Lace Harding/Scout Jim</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Reddit Prompts 2: Because the old one is quite full [22]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1918846</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Wicked Grace Under the Mistletoe</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The winter had been hard, its winds doing nothing to mitigate the coldness that radiated off the mountain peaks around Skyhold. Snow clung to building and ground alike, as if eager to drive away the memory of green grass and blooming flowers and to replace it with a seemingly eternal snowy landscape. The breath of people traveling in the fortress escaped them in puffs of fog. The weather’s cold bite inspired all but the hardiest of people to move along as speedily as they could and return to the merciful warmth of buildings with intact roofs and roaring fires in their hearths. One such traveler, one of the Inquisition’s scouts, shivered and hurriedly worked his way down the steps from the main keep. His destination? A wooden building, three stories tall, light shining from every one of its windows, and the sounds of music and laughter drifting out of it. The shingle above the main door read: “The Herald’s Rest.”</p>
<p>As soon as he ducked in the door, the muffled noise grew into a roar of laughs, murmured conversations – some of them much louder than others, thanks to how readily the ale flowed to fill empty cups – and the sweet voice of the resident minstrel accompanied by her lute. He looked around, hoping that he wasn’t too late. The Commander had been intent on keeping him longer, completely forgetting what day it was. Fortunately for Scout Jamison O’Ryan, Lady Trevelyan, the Inquisitor herself, had intervened. She’d sweetly informed her lover, the Commander, that it was Satinalia and that he’d promised to spend the evening with her. Jamison was going to take his little victories wherever he could find them. There, in the back corner! Scout Pip, a rough-looking elven woman, waved to him. He quickly made his way to the nearly-full table and took the remaining empty chair.</p>
<p>“About bloody time you got here, Jim. What held you up?” Pip asked.</p>
<p>“The Commander forgot what day it is,” he replied.</p>
<p>“Yer shittin’ me,” another scout, a human woman with more gray than auburn in her hair and an eyepatch over her right eye, said. Mavis. Her name was Mavis, he reminded himself. “What bloody idiot could forget about Satinalia?”</p>
<p>“It’s not that he’s an idiot, it’s just that the Commander is… very dedicated to getting his work done regardless of what’s going on,” a soft voice answered. Jim discreetly looked for its source. Lace Harding’s green eyes crinkled with a smile when he met her gaze.</p>
<p>“Well, now that His Highness has finally seen fit to grace us with his presence, how about we get started?” Scout Ephraim said, raising his deep voice to be heard above the din at the table. The chatter came to a stop for a moment. The man’s tall stature, numerous tattoos, and broad build gave many people pause. How in the world someone like him could be stealthy was a secret that only the Maker and Sister Nightingale knew. Less flattering rumors theorized that one of his parents had been an ox man.</p>
<p>“What are we playing, anyway?” Jim asked. Sometimes it was Diamondback, other times it was Nug in the Cradle, or Twenty-and-One, or…</p>
<p>“Wicked Grace. What do you take me for, some toothless old granny?” Ephraim replied.</p>
<p>Or that. <em>Sod.</em> Jim tried his best to hide his dismay. The last time he played Wicked Grace, he’d quite literally lost his pants. It’d been difficult explaining that when the Ambassador had caught him trying to scurry back to the barracks with what little dignity he had left.</p>
<p>“Just one problem,” Pip peeped up, “the Ambassador told us no more gambling with money. Or clothing. What the void are we supposed to wager with?”</p>
<p>“I know that. I’m not one to court Lady Montilyet’s wrath twice. So, we can wager with these,” he pushed a large bowl of unshelled nuts to the center of the table.</p>
<p>“Nuts? Are you quite serious?” Pip asked. “Where’s the fun in that?”</p>
<p>A cat-like grin accompanied the twinkle in Mavis’ eye. “I have an idea.”</p>
<p>“Why do I have this urge to run away?” another scout, a dwarf by the name of Harris, asked.</p>
<p>“Oh, hush you. You ain’t even heard it, yet,” Mavis shot back.</p>
<p>“Out with it, then,” the dwarf groused.</p>
<p>Mavis pulled out a length of string from one pocket and a small sprig of green leaves with a tiny cluster of white berries from another. She fastened the greenery to one end and looped the rest of the length over the low-hanging support beam that was above their table. She answered Harris’ raised eyebrow with “I’m feeling festive. It’s bleeding Satinalia, after all!”</p>
<p>“Explain,” Pip demanded.</p>
<p>“Well,” Mavis began, “I say we play elimination style. One hour. Winner gets a smooch from the last loser.”</p>
<p>The elf rolled her eyes.</p>
<p>“What? What’s wrong?” Mavis asked. “Do <em>you</em> have any better ideas to keep it interesting, hm?”</p>
<p>Pip shook her head. “Maker, I’m going to need more ale for this.”</p>
<p>The rest of the table chuckled. Jim swallowed the lump in his throat. Maybe he’d luck out and be the first one to fold.</p>
<p>“Cabot! More of that spiced ale and keep it coming!” Ephraim called out.</p>
<p>Moments later, one of the barmaids arrived with a tray laden with mugs. Once the drinks were passed out, Pip began dealing cards. Mavis set the hourglass on the table with a thump. Jim took a large swig from his mug, hoping that it’d soon soothe his nerves. His eyes met Lace’s across the table once again. She offered a wink and a smile.</p>
<p>**</p>
<p>Jim could feel his heart beating in his ears while he stared at the cards in his hand. Ephraim, Lace, and himself were still in the game and there was perhaps five minutes worth of sand left in the hourglass. He drained the last of his mug, his third that evening. The brew had a nice cinnamon aftertaste to it. Tasty brew or not, it would take far more than three mugs of the stuff to make him feel comfortable about puckering up with Scout Ephraim’s overly-fuzzy beard.</p>
<p>“Show your cards,” Lace declared with a smirk.</p>
<p>Jim set down a pair of cards and turned them over; the angel of destruction and a minstrel of wrath. Ephraim slowly turned his over, revealing a fool of swords and an ace of dragons.</p>
<p>“Oh, what a shame!” Lace said as she turned over her cards, the empress of charity and the angel of death. “Looks like you’re out, Effie.”</p>
<p>“Bah! Rigged, I say, rigged! You’re cheating, dwarf!” the burly man pouted playfully. He stole a handful of nuts and began nibbling on them.</p>
<p>Jim’s heart leaped into his throat when Lace winked at him, giving way to a smile that made her eyes twinkle. He suddenly felt like he was a field mouse being watched by a farm cat.</p>
<p>“Last round,” Lace grinned as she shuffled and dealt the cards.</p>
<p><em>Oh, Maker, this </em><em>is </em><em>awkward. This is so very awkward, what if…</em> Jim’s mind spun in circles as he tried to make sense of the cards in his hand. While she might’ve been short, Lace was undeniably a pretty woman. He’d always admired her smiles and the way it made her leaf-green eyes crinkle just so. Not that he’d ever breathed those thoughts to another soul. <em>It’d be inappropriate, wouldn’t it? What if she didn’t like the thought of a human having a tiny crush on her?</em> He swallowed hard. He knew that she was downright deadly with that bow of hers. He’d witnessed her take down a Venatori without any of the ‘Vint’s companions being able to figure out where she’d been hiding.</p>
<p>“Time to show me what you’ve got,” Lace said with a grin.</p>
<p><em>Well, nothing for it. </em>He laid out three cards and slowly turned them over. The ace of fools, a two of dragons, and a squire of swords.</p>
<p>Lace cackled as she turned over her cards: the emperor of wrath, a five of charity, and the angel of greed. “Aw, such a shame! Looks like I win! C’mere,” she beckoned with one of her dainty fingers.</p>
<p>Their audience hooted and snickered. “Pucker up, Jimmy boy!” Mavis said.</p>
<p>Jim’s eyes went wide as he looked at Lace. <em>Wait, what? She’s serious? </em>He mimed a ‘<em>are you sure?’ </em>look her way. She nodded and beckoned again. He felt like he was watching someone else as he stood up from his seat and drifted to her side. She stood up on her chair and pulled him close, claiming his lips with her own. Their companions hooted and laughed.</p>
<p>“Atta girl! Get ‘im!” Ephraim said with a deep chuckle.</p>
<p>One by one, the other scouts left, leaving Jim and Lace alone. She grinned at him and leaned over to whisper into his ear. “How about we get out of here, you and me?”</p>
<p>He blinked several times. His mind needed a moment to make certain that his eyes and ears weren’t playing tricks on him. A pretty lady, <em>the</em> pretty lady he’d been harboring a crush on for some months, wanted to spend time alone with <em>him</em>? Before he could second-guess himself, he nodded.</p>
<p>“Good. You wouldn’t believe how long it took me to convince Mavis to set this all up,” she said with a smile and hopped down from her chair. She took one of his hands in her own and began guiding them toward the door.</p>
<p>“Wait, what?” he asked in surprise. “You set this all up?”</p>
<p>“Well, one of us had to do something! I got a little tired of waiting for you to make the first move. Now, are you going to come stargaze and eat cookies with me, or am I going to have to do it alone?” she said.</p>
<p>She didn’t need to ask him twice. His smile made his face feel like it was going to crack. Hand in hand, they left the tavern.</p>
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